This invention relates to a pellet-fired cooking grill, sometimes referred to as a barbecue. Apparatus of this description normally includes means for providing a source of heat, and are usable, usually in an outdoor setting, to prepare foods as by broiling or baking them.
A popular wood fuel product which is available today is so-called pellet fuel, taking the form of compressed pellets of wood or fibrous material. The pellets may be made from a variety of materials including sawdust and other residues, and typically have lengths ranging from one half to one and one half inches. Another example of what might be thought of as pellet fuel is comminuted poplar, or comminuted residue such as corn husks or nut shells. Whatever the particular description of the fuel, the fuel characteristically has a fairly uniform size, can be handled in a storage facility such as a hopper, and burns evenly when ignited and supplied with combustion supporting gas such as air.
This invention broadly concerns improvements in a cooking grill which utilizes pellet fuel as broadly defined herein. A cooking grill pursuant to the invention may rely upon the gravity feeding of pellet fuel from the storage hopper, whereby a mass of burning pellets may be sustained over a period of time which provides the source of heat for the cooking.
A cooking grill or a barbecue following the invention has a relatively simple construction yet is reliable in operation. The grill does not require a source of electric power for its operation. In utilizing pellet material instead of charcoal briquettes as the source of heat, economies in operation may be realized. Unlike gas-fired barbecues or grills, material cooked is subjected to a flavorful wood smoke to retain some of the taste thereof. A convection-type heating occurs with the barbecue grill which promotes even and sustained cooking of a variety of different food products.